The night of Thursday, September 5, 2024, will henceforth perhaps be the most significant milestone for Cristiano Ronaldo, as CR7 scored his 900th goal in his incredible career.
In the match against Croatia for the first round of the Nations League, which saw the Iberians victorious with a score of 2-1 at the “Da Luz” stadium in Lisbon, the almost 40-year-old Ronaldo scored to make it 2-0 for Roberto Martinez’s team.
The Portuguese star has achieved more goals than anyone else in the history of the sport, according to the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS). Lionel Messi follows with 838 goals, and Pele is third with 762.
Ronaldo is also the all-time top scorer in Real Madrid’s history with 450 goals, first at the Champions League/European Cup level with 140 (Messi 129), and first in national team history with 131 (Messi 109 with Argentina).
Equally significant was the night for San Marino, whose national team recorded its first victory in history in an official match after 34 years since its first game in November 1990.
The team from the independent state of 35,000 residents won 1-0 against Liechtenstein with a goal from 19-year-old Niko Sensoli in the 53rd minute.
In more than 200 matches, San Marino had recorded 194 losses, 10 draws, and only one win, in a friendly match, winning 1-0 again against Liechtenstein (April 2004), when Sensoli was not even born yet!
Results and scorers:
LEAGUE A
GROUP A
- Portugal – Croatia 2-1 (7′ Dalot, 34′ Ronaldo – 41′ own goal Dalot)
- Scotland – Poland 2-3 (46′ Gilmour, 76′ McTominay – 8′ Szymanski, 44′ pen. Lewandowski, 90’+7 pen. Zalewski)
GROUP D
- Denmark – Switzerland 2-0 (82′ Dorgu, 90’+2 Hojbjerg)
- Serbia – Spain 0-0
LEAGUE C
GROUP A
- Azerbaijan – Sweden 1-3 (82′ Dadasov – 65′, 71′ Isak, 80′ Gyokeres)
- Estonia – Slovakia 0-1 (70′ Suslov)
GROUP B
- Belarus – Bulgaria 0-0
- N. Ireland – Luxembourg 2-0 (11′ McNair, 16′ Ballard)
LEAGUE D
GROUP A
- San Marino – Liechtenstein 1-0 (52′ Sensoli)